Yin Yuyao is completely unaware of the unresolved issues she carries, but Yin Yujie sees them clearly; these issues only arose after her sister got married.
It must be that Ni Chengli went too far that caused my usually gentle and calm sister to act this way.
If she had known Ni Chengli's intentions and his hatred for the Prince of Pingyang earlier, she would have married in her sister's place instead of letting her sister suffer like this for the rest of her life.
But she only found out about this after her sister had been married for more than four years, almost five years.
Yin Yujie had mentioned her plan to the Yin family, but without exception, it was rejected. Yin Yuyao was the one who disagreed with her the most.
Although she and Ni Chengli didn't get along, she knew Ni Chengli's personality. He wasn't the kind of person who would change his opinion of others because of someone else, a point that Ning Ci also confirmed.
Ning Ci said that Ni Chengli had never been kind to her family and relatives because he was kind to her; he still didn't care about them, not even his parents. If Yin Yujie wanted to change Ni Chengli on her own, it would be extremely difficult.
She was already in a sea of suffering, and she didn't want her beloved younger sister to suffer as well.
Unexpectedly, Yin Yujie persisted in her plan, catching the Yin family completely off guard afterward. Fortunately, Ni Chengli seemed to treat Yin Yujie differently, and even his attitude towards Yin Yuyao had improved. Perhaps Yin Yujie could truly change Ni Chengli's personality?
They soon realized that this idea was wrong.
It was impossible for them to change Ni Chengli's opinion of Prince Pingyang because of Yin Yujie. The tragic death of Prince Pingyang and the humiliation and suicide of his wife served as a bloody lesson for them. Ni Chengli was so arrogant even before ascending the throne; what would he be like after he did?
At the time, Yin Yujie had just given birth to her and Ni Chengli's child, Muyang, and Ni Chengli became her father's murderer. Her feelings must have been incredibly complex; she felt not only deep remorse for her family but also guilt and self-blame towards her two older sisters. It was all because of her insistence on her own way that her parents had died tragically. Therefore, her hatred for Ni Chengli intensified.
Yin Yulin inherited the title and became the Prince of Pingyang. He also became the Minister of War and regained the half of the tiger tally that his father had handed over. It could be said that he now held many titles, even more than the Prince of Pingyang at the time. But Ni Chengli showed no intention of harming him, which was something that no one could understand.
Yin Yuyao knew that the original owner of this body possessed a secret edict and intended to use it after Ni Chengli ascended the throne. However, things were not as simple as the Emperor, Empress, and the Yin family thought.
After Ni Chengli ascended the throne, almost all the court officials became his loyal subjects. The Empress Dowager had no real power and relied solely on Ni Chengli's 'filial piety'. Therefore, the late emperor's decree would not only be ineffective, but might even lead to Yin Yuyao's death and the disintegration of the Yin family.
The emperor and empress thought they had made thorough preparations for their son, but Ni Chengli already knew and poisoned the emperor a second time. This time, however, it was a colorless and odorless slow-acting poison that would cause him to die gradually without his knowledge.
The Yin family originally thought that Ni Chengli was targeting Prince Pingyang because of Ning Ci's matter and the affairs of the common people, but they never thought that it was because Ni Chengli knew from the beginning that the emperor and empress had given the secret edict to Prince Pingyang. He just didn't expect that the secret edict, which Prince Pingyang loved so much for his daughter, would be passed on to Yin Yuyao.
But he was still working hard in secret, brainwashing the emperor and empress into loving him, while secretly winning over important officials in the court to his own use, and even having the leisure to take on Yin Yujie's plan.
The truth of the matter was only revealed to the Yin family when Ni Chengli ascended the throne.
Ni Chengli may be extreme, but he was nowhere near as extreme as the Yin family imagined: that he would take his anger out on the Prince of Pingyang to this extent because of rumors, the Ning Ci incident, and the relationship between the Prince of Pingyang and General Longxiang.
He cared deeply for Ning Ci, but he wasn't stupid. He knew all of this had nothing to do with the Prince of Pingyang, and there was no way he would target him for it. This was just a false rumor he deliberately spread after learning he was being monitored by the Emperor, Empress, and the Prince of Pingyang. Unfortunately, no one saw through his childish scheme.
As for Yin Yujie, his initial glance was genuine, but so was his deliberate acceptance of her and his concern for her. However, this would never be the catalyst for him to let Prince Pingyang go. If he released Prince Pingyang, who would release him? Compared to his status and the affairs of the state, that little bit of affection was insignificant.
After eliminating his greatest threats—his father and father-in-law—he ascended the throne and gained supreme power. Everyone, including his mother and concubines, had to depend on him for survival.
He wasn't afraid of the Yin family rebelling, because he understood them. If they had any intention of rebelling, they would have done so long ago when they discovered he had drugged Yin Yuyao, and wouldn't have waited until now.
Now that he has the remaining half of the tiger tally in his hands, he will never do what his father did, giving the remaining half to Prince Pingyang out of trust. He will not trust anyone, nor will he entrust his life and the life of the country to anyone.
The secret edict became worthless, and the elite troops no longer had absolute command authority. The Yin family's momentary leniency led to the current situation.
As Yin Yuyao spoke, her eyes reddened. "Prince Pingyang valued the brotherly bond between him and the Emperor very much, which is why he gave Ni Chengli many opportunities. As for Lady Pingyang, she felt that Ni Chengli was still young at the time, and as a mother, she couldn't bear to do anything to her young child."
"The original owner knew that her parents were loyal and kind-hearted, and she also knew that this marriage agreement would not change no matter what. For the sake of her family, she had no choice but to accept it. But what happened between her and Ni Chengli after the marriage, none of us know. We only know that she later became somewhat depressed and even engaged in self-harm."
"I guess she's suffering from depression. I had some before I came, but it got worse after I arrived. Maybe it's because the original owner of this body shares the same name as me, or maybe the original owner's living environment was too oppressive. In any case, Yu Jie can see that she wants to help me. Once everything is successful, I will become the Empress Dowager."
“I know that Yu Jie’s feelings toward me are very complicated. She knows that I am not her sister. On the one hand, she hates me for taking her place, but on the other hand, she can’t bring herself to harm me. She definitely hates me, but at the same time, she loves me and my nominal child because of her love for me.”
"Back then, my condition no longer allowed me to be empress, because there were more and more concubines in the harem, and Ni Chengli already had seven sons. Those struggles exhausted me. I finally agreed to Yu Jie's request to come and help me. On the surface, I died of illness, but in reality, I lived in the Cold Palace."
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